bush - a lame duck?

[2007what!]

ever since the congress election this past fall and especially after last night's state of the union address i have seen many media and people refer to bush being a "lame duck" for the next two years, and i was wondering what excactly people mean by this? i know what the expression means, but to what extent will this be reality? yes, democrats now have the majority of congress and bush will have to go through them to pass bills and new laws, but he can still veto any bill or law and suggest any bill or law he wants, just like he could with republican majority in congress. the only thing that has changed, as far as i can see, is that some bills and laws will now be harder to pass for him. how does this make him a lame duck, though? it's not like he will sit in his office and watch democrats take over the country's politics for the next two years, he will still be an active president and leader of the country. the way some people portray it, you'd think that bush will now all but officially resign and step into the shadows, and i don't see that happening until 2009.

[pilferk]

ever since the congress election this past fall and especially after last night's state of the union address i have seen many media and people refer to bush being a "lame duck" for the next two years, and i was wondering what excactly people mean by this? i know what the expression means, but to what extent will this be reality? yes, democrats now have the majority of congress and bush will have to go through them to pass bills and new laws, but he can still veto any bill or law and suggest any bill or law he wants, just like he could with republican majority in congress. the only thing that has changed, as far as i can see, is that some bills and laws will now be harder to pass for him. how does this make him a lame duck, though? it's not like he will sit in his office and watch democrats take over the country's politics for the next two years, he will still be an active president and leader of the country. the way some people portray it, you'd think that bush will now all but officially resign and step into the shadows, and i don't see that happening until 2009.

You need to understand the political climate.....

Bush has his own personal agenda (just like very president does).  He has little political capital to wrangle together to get that agenda through because he's spent the first 6 years of his presidency thumbing his nose at bipartisanship...he's not had to make any compromises because he's had the legislature in the palm of his hand.  He can suggest anything he wants to the legislature...that's true.  And they can quickly vote it down (further damaging his political reputation, and that of his party, in the process).  He CAN use his veto power, and use it judiciously.  Here's the problem:  IF he uses it TOO judiciously, he's flouting, essentially, the will of the American people...because, lets face it, the change in congressionl makeup, no matter what some might say, was a pretty strong mandate for change.  So, if he vetoes everything that comes across his desk (and he may) he's going to screw the Republican party come '08.  And the higher ups in his party know it, and are likely going to use THAT as leverage to shape just how much Bush can and can't do "on his own".

And there's why he'll be a lame duck.  He can't accomplish anything much of his agenda, but he can't completely stonewall the democrat's agenda or his own party is going to turn on him because of the damage he'll do to them.    He can be active, sure...but only to a point.  I'm sure he'll take stands on hotbutton issues, with positions widely held by his party. But how frequent those stands are is likely not going to be dictated by him...at least not entirely.

  And given his speech last night, and what the meat of it spoke to, it sure sounds like he's resigned himself to the role.

[The Dog]

i think it all took a turn for a worse after Katrina....Iraq was some far away land, but Katrina was our home, our brothers and neighbors.  he really F'ed that up.  After that he came under intense scrutiny for all his other F ups.

[Where is Hassan Nasrallah ?]

what did he not fucked up? he even fucked up the whole word
i think you guys just got the worst president ever

[Gordon Gekko]

There were quite a few "stand-up" men in the Bush bunch - and they were all asked to stand up and leave.

[Axl4Prez2004]

...perhaps the lamest duck ever.  For kicks and giggles I watched the state of the union on Fox.  I wanted to see it presented from a "fair and balanced" perspective.     Actually, it wasn't too bad.  I have to admit I was not expecting them to mention repeatedly the president's low support numbers and America's heavy opposition to the war.  They did just that.  Fox News gets a thumbs-up for last night from Axl4Prez2004.  With the exception of having commentary from some ultra-conservative think-tanker, I must say, not bad.

PS  I noticed McCain looking down seemingly to avoid contact with the camera.  I wonder if advisors told candidates for the job not to share face time on such a negative night. 

[Dr. Blutarsky]

I saw Hillary with a smirk on her face every time the camera pointed at her. Wonder if that was posturing? 

I give Bush credit for pushing the alternative fuel and oil dependancy reduction measures. Guess the family has made their millions on oil, now they dont need it anymore? 

[Booker Floyd]

the way some people portray it, you'd think that bush will now all but officially resign and step into the shadows, and i don't see that happening until 2009.

Hes a lame duck for the obvious reasons: hes not up for reelection after his term expires, that expiration will come sooner rather than later, and he lost Congress.  Hes also remarkably unpopular; after the 2004 election, he boasted of his political capital.  Have you heard any such boasts lately?  Hes poisonous to even previously loyal members of his party which is why so many of them distanced themselves from him during the 2006 elections.  His most high-profile agenda (Iraq escalation) is being forced through despite resistance from other Republicans.  The centerpiece of his second term (social security privatization) failed miserably.  His political capital is lower than ever and everyones interest is in the 2008 candidates, thus hes a lame duck. 

[zman]

i think it all took a turn for a worse after Katrina....Iraq was some far away land, but Katrina was our home, our brothers and neighbors.? he really F'ed that up.? After that he came under intense scrutiny for all his other F ups.

You really can't blame the Katrina fiasco on Bush. What ablut the mayor of New Orleans he was able to evacuate himself but did nothing for the poor people in his city. The local goverment should have taken precauitions and had buses or some sort of transportaion lined up to evacuate people. It is not like they woke up one morning and they wher hit by a hurricane they new it was coming. The mayor Ray Nagen should have done something instead of crying that the president isn't doing anything.

[Booker Floyd]

You really can't blame the Katrina fiasco on Bush.

Yes, he shares blame with the inept governer and mayor. 

[2007what!]

the way some people portray it, you'd think that bush will now all but officially resign and step into the shadows, and i don't see that happening until 2009.

Hes a lame duck for the obvious reasons: hes not up for reelection after his term expires, that expiration will come sooner rather than later, and he lost Congress.? Hes also remarkably unpopular; after the 2004 election, he boasted of his political capital.? Have you heard any such boasts lately?? Hes poisonous to even previously loyal members of his party which is why so many of them distanced themselves from him during the 2006 elections.? His most high-profile agenda (Iraq escalation) is being forced through despite resistance from other Republicans.? The centerpiece of his second term (social security privatization) failed miserably.? His political capital is lower than ever and everyones interest is in the 2008 candidates, thus hes a lame duck.?

what does political capital mean?
english is not my mother tongue.

[Booker Floyd]

From Wikipedia:

Political capital is primarily based on public figure's favorable image among the populace and among other important personalities in or out of the government. A politician gains political capital by virtue of their position, and also by pursuing popular policies, achieving success with their initiatives, performing favors for other politicians, etc. Political capital must be spent to be useful, and will generally expire by the end of a politician's term in office. In addition, it can be wasted, typically by failed attempts to promote unpopular policies which are not central to a politician's agenda.

[CheapJon]

if he would have been a one-legged lame duck, would he swim in circles?

[Bodhi]

Bush and the mayor and Gov got to take the fall for Katrina...although natural disasters are first and foremost a state issue...FEMA was a fucking disaster and that has to fall on Bush....I know the mayor did a terrible job, and how he was re-elected is beyond me....maybe it was his "chocolate city" speech...actually that might have been after the election...anyway back on topic...Bush is a complete lame duck....hes not up for re-election...his conservative base has abandoned him for not being conservative enough, and the left hates him no matter what he does...so where does that leave him?

[tim_m]

Bush and the mayor and Gov got to take the fall for Katrina...although natural disasters are first and foremost a state issue...FEMA was a fucking disaster and that has to fall on Bush....I know the mayor did a terrible job, and how he was re-elected is beyond me....maybe it was his "chocolate city" speech...actually that might have been after the election...anyway back on topic...Bush is a complete lame duck....hes not up for re-election...his conservative base has abandoned him for not being conservative enough, and the left hates him no matter what he does...so where does that leave him?

It basically leaves him up shit creek without a paddle.

[AxlsMainMan]

To think an an ignorant, Texan redneck knows nothing of how to run a country.. 

[Bodhi]

To think an an ignorant, Texan redneck knows nothing of how to run a country..?

I know people love to call Bush ignorant..but he did go to Yale...I dont care how his father got him in there he went....He was also a C student.....I think being a C student at YALE pretty much makes you smarter than 99% of college graduates in this country...I mean only a few other Ivy League schools can compete with that....So i dont buy into the whole "Bush is a moron" thing....He might not articulate himself well...as a matter of fact he is probably the worst communicator I have ever seen....John Kerry also went to Yale and got WORSE grades than Bush yet in the 2004 election most people were saying how much smarter John kerry was....communicating goes a long way.....

[2007what!]

actually bush used to be quite articulate in his younger days, i recently watched a clip on youtube which compared a speech he held as governor, ten years ago, without a manuscript and he was articulate and flaweless in his way of speaking, then it was compared to a recent clip where he stumbles like a moron. a doctor concluded that something is clearly wrong, he confluded that it can't be anything else than an early stage of alzheimer's disease. i've suspected something similar for a long time, a man doesn't become president of the united states if he's an idiot that can't communicate, it has clearly gotten worse in resent years. one man claimed it has to do with him being less secure of himself now because of his unpopularity, but i think that's na?ve to think. it's obvious it's something else, and people who have spoken to him in person describe him as intelligent and funny. if you wanna attack me for defending bush then go ahead, my intention here was merely to clear up a rather na?ve misunderstanding that bush is stupid.